WELCOME TO HEASON EVENTS

Wild Swimming - France

Wild Things Publishing have now made most of their books available as interactive apps via Itunes and Google Play. The apps work pretty nicely featuring a navigable map, as well as individual chapters of the books. There's a 'Near Me' option which shows you the closest spots to you in the guide, though this is best accessed via the 'Search; function where you can specify your location and a search radius (the Near Me button defaults to 100miles!). The apps are offline meaning that assuming you have space on your phone, all you need to use them is a GPS signal (or a map). They cost £4.99 on each platform. (there's currently an offer on and they are £3.99 for the holiday season).

ORIGINAL REVIEW - 4TH MAY 2012

This is Daniel Start’s 3rd book in the series. His first, Wild Swimming, we gave a glowing review a while back. His second, a companion to the first, but for coastal locations, is on my to-do list, but first I wanted to get something published about this little beauty.

It is the same format – packed full of so many stunning photos that it has made me seriously wish that I live in France! It has given us the inspiration for our next holiday – a combination od running the GR20 and sampling the delightful looking wild swimming spots on Corsica (Corsica being a French island of course!). Interestingly there are no coastal spots, but given that he did this for the UK it’s clear that he is working on a second volume which will detail where to go when at the French seaside. The main omission is any spots in the flatlands of the North. There aren’t really any! As a regular visitor to Fontainebleau just south of Paris I know just how few and far between nice swimming spots are in this neck of the woods, but I am confident they are there. We found a nice one right in the centre of Moret Sur Loing – the water wasn’t particularly clean, but it’s a rather lovely spot. Hopefully he will be able to seek out a few gems in the North of the country for a future edition, but I rather suspect that he has done his homework and that the vast majority of British holidaymakers, who the book is amied at after all, drive through the barren plains at the speed limit heading for the mountains and gorges in the South.

All I can say is buy this book. Put it on a coffee table, put it in the toilet, or put it on your bookshelf – ours is living in the kitchen where I show it to everyone who comes through the back door!. It’s thoroughly lovely.

If you have an Iphone or an Ipad you can also purchase a brand new App which is basically an electronic versio of the book that works with GPS to take you to your nearest spots. Can't wait for this on the Android...